We’ve all heard the grumblings before.

“Our younger generation today is out of control. They have no direction. They have no goals. They have no dreams. I fear for our future.”

Well, fear not.

Young people all over the nation are doing amazing things.

For the past two weeks, millions of Americans have been enthralled by the Beijing Olympics, watching seemingly non-stop television coverage or sifting through newspapers and scanning the Web for the stories and the medal counts.

Thirty members of the U.S. Olympic team are teenagers.

They include gold-medal gymnast Shawn Johnson, who is barely old enough to drive a car, and Taekwondo’s Charlotte Craig, who isn’t old enough to vote.

But it’s not just Olympians finding success.

Take for instance Blooming Prairie High School junior Joe Gibson, who helped pass legislation to lower Minnesota’s blood donation age from 17 to 16 and is now on a mission to go nationwide and perhaps worldwide to encourage young adults between the ages of 16 to 25 to donate blood.

It’s young people like Ms. Johnson, Ms. Craig and Mr. Gibson who make a difference and whose efforts are commendable and inspiring for both the young and the old.